Koko Bakery is the busiest community center in Cleveland that also happens to sell Chinese doughnuts. The bakery has become wildly popular since opening in the AsiaTown neighborhood in 2006. On a random Saturday, you’ll find students from Cleveland State University and Case Western Reserve University, folks from the neighborhood and Cleveland Flea-goers all lined up in the doorway for the self-service case chock-full of savory and sweet doughnuts and buns. Then, inevitably, they all head to the counter for one of the ever-expanding selection of bubble teas — strawberry, Thai tea, mango or lychee, maybe — all studded with perfectly chewy tapioca. Koko has gotten so popular that it opened a sit-down cafe next door earlier this year, offering bakery favorites and Chinese food staples such as pillowy, meaty steam buns. The thing that keeps people coming back, says owner Jianj Xu, is the bakery’s authentic roots: savory buns, seasonal specialties and not-too-sweet fruit-encrusted cakes without a single kiwi slice out of place. “We make so many items here, but every day they’re gone,” says Xu. 3710 Payne Ave., Cleveland, 216-881-7600, kokosbakery.com
Our Pick: A play on classic Chinese milk bread, the green onion loaf ($5.95) ain’t gonna win any awards for its gnarled appearance, but it makes up for it with a can’t-stop-eating wallop of savory green onion.
Best Bakeries: Koko Bakery
AsiaTown's vendor of Chinese doughnuts and sweet and savory buns serves as a community center.
